The present invention relates to a dehumidifying material for use in packing articles such as precision machines and dehydrated food which are easily damaged by moisture and for use as bed mats capable of absorbing moisture to ensure a comfortable sleep, and may also be used as dehumidifying panels in the construction of houses and so on.
Generally, electronic computers, various precision measurement instruments, precision machines, tea, rice cakes and the like which are to be completely free from moisture are sealingly packed together with desiccating agents with damp-proofing packing material.
Such measure for dehumidification necessitates two kinds of materials, i.e., desiccating agent and damp-proofing packing material. As a result, especially when a small-sized article is packed together with a desiccating agent, the packed article resulting package becomes voluminous excessively large due to the volume of the desiccating agent.
Large-sized precision machines to be exported are not wholly dehumidified by desiccating agents disposed at various positions around the machines and are difficult to sealingly pack with damp-proofing packing material. Thus, safety of commercial articles shipped to various countries in the world under various weather conditions cannot be completely guaranteed. When the contents must be protected from damage due to impacts, they are packed with a shock-absorbing material which increases the size of the packages.
Incorporation of a desiccating agent in a packing operation itself is disadvantageous in that the agent may be inadvertently omitted. Further there is the danger that the agent may be mistakenly eaten by children, especially in the case of packed food.
In addition, there have been no effective countermeasures in the art against a problem of bedridden patients' beds of Japanese mats becoming moldy after prolonged use or against a problem of a seat in an automotive vehicle or the like becoming unpleasantly dampish after one has sat on the seat for a long time.
Some embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.